A Toothpaste Too Good to Be True?

Actually, the head of the company that makes it won’t call it toothpaste but a “dental gel.”

Whatever.

The Very Big Deal about it is that they claim it controls plaque better than other products. According to CBS,

After a three-week study comparing Livionex to top-rated Colgate Total, [dental researcher Petra Wilder-Smith] found that subjects who used Livionex had 2.5 times less plaque, and their gums were more than twice as healthy.

There have been at least a couple other studies, as well. Other One in the Journal of Oral Hygiene & Health found an 84% improvement in plaque control compared with a conventional paste. Another found that while both the Livionex and the control gel reduced oral biofilm, the Livionex showed “greater efficacy.”

What’s more, this new paste is free of a lot of the stuff you don’t want to see in your toothpaste: SLS, sugar, triclosan, fluoride, and harsh abrasives.

But what each $20 tube does contain is EDTA, a well=known chelator. The idea is that activated EDTA binds the calcium that allows bacteria to create stronger biofilms that hold the colony together.

But calcium isn’t the only element that EDTA chelates.

In fact, you may already be familiar with EDTA. It’s a common means of cleansing the body of toxic heavy metals. More than a few recommend it after amalgam removal to help the body rid itself of mercury that has been harbored in its tissues for years.